The trial of the captain of the shipwrecked Costa Concordia cruise liner, which began in Tuscany, has been postponed due to a lawyers' strike.
The venue, a theatre converted into a courtroom, was chosen to accommodate all the survivors and relatives of the 32 victims.
Francesco Schettino his eyes shaded by sunglasses and slipping in through a back door, made no comment to reporters.
He is accused of manslaughter, abandoning ship and causing the shipwreck near the island of Giglio.
His lawyer, Domenico Pepe, told reporters that, as expected, the judge was postponing the hearing due to an eight-day nationwide lawyers' strike.
Mr Pepe said 1,000 witnesses were expected to eventually testify.
Many of them are expected to be from among the 4,200 passengers and crew aboard the ship that struck a jagged reef off Giglio, took on water and capsized.
Capt Schettino has denied wrongdoing.
Five other defendants in the case have successfully sought plea bargains, which are now being handled separately.
"The main defendants remain in the trial and the main civil plaintiff, Costa is still here," said Pier Paolo Lucchese, lawyer for the residents of Giglio.
"So for us the presence of Mr Schettino and Costa is enough."
Over a year on, hundreds of divers and engineers are still working on rescuing the 290 metre-long shipwreck.
On the night of 13 January 2012, the Concordia hit a jagged reef, which gashed its hull on one side, causing the ship to rapidly take on water.
Passengers said the ship's evacuation was delayed and chaotic.
The cruise ship listed so badly to one side that some life boats could not be launched, and many people aboard had to jump into the sea and swim to the tiny island in the dark.
Mr Schettino contends he is innocent and is being made a scapegoat. He insists the reef was not marked on the ship's navigational charts.
Prosecutors have alleged that Mr Schettino steered the ship too dangerously close to the island in a publicity stunt for Costa Concordia SpA, the Italian cruise ship company.
